After Angels
by seveneightnine789
Summary: Fang, remember what the little girl- what's her name- right, Angel, said- you either stay and weigh it in, or you leave and don't have a say. It's time you move on- with me." Set right after Angel.Do not read if you haven't read Angel yet- major spoiler!
1. Moving On

*****N/A: So, this is my latest story. I just read Angel, and it was _amazing_. Warning: DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ _ANGEL _YET! MAJOR SPOILERS! Anyways, let's get to the disclaimer. **

**Disclaimer: I, _tinaisawesome_, do not a) own the characters in this story and b) do not own the main plot. All I own is the idea to write this down, and to come up with this. **

**One more thing: _PLEASEEEEEEE Review! _I need to know what you people think about this story so I can either improve it or get some feedback. I mean, I'm writing this for you all, so some reviews would be appreciated. Thank you, and enjoy the story!**

Max POV

Funny how life changes so quickly. 2 months ago, I would've said Fang was my soul mate. 2 weeks ago, I would've said Fang and I were never going to see each other again. 2 days ago, I would've said, who should I choose, Fang or Dylan? Now, (surprised by the no 2 hours ago?) all I could think about was Angel dying. Her sweet face, with dirt and mud caked on it, telling me she would believe in me forever. I hopelessly flew on top of the Arizona desert, scanning the crowd for Ella.

"Ella?" I screamed for the umpteenth time. (That's a funny word- _ump_teenth?) I finally spotted a dark haired blotch in the sand-colored sand. "Ella!" me and Dylan said in recognition. We _had _to figure out the whole jinx-thing out. Nudge, Gazzy and Iggy looked at us in surprise. They were still in shock about Angel. I was too. But still, we dive bombed in unison towards the brown-haired spot and zoomed in.

"Max!" Ella screamed and hugged me. "I'm sorry I left like that! They captured me, and I escaped, and I didn't know what to do, and I'm just so glad you're here, and..." She was starting to talk like Nudge. Not a good thing.

"Shh," I said. "I'm here now. Don't worry, Ells. I'm here." She listened to half my words, and a couple minutes later, Iggy and Ella were off to the side, talking. The Gasman was currently even _more_ depressed, and Nudge was trying hard to (and miserably failing) at comforting him. I just kind of slid off to the side and looked out into the endless sand. Obviously, Dylan followed.

"Hey," he said, as he sat down next to where I was standing, and pulled me down to the sand. After falling down in, and spitting out, sand, I flung sand at him. That was all it took. Everyone was throwing sand at each other, and by the end, we had sand everywhere. And by that, I mean, _everywhere_. One of the only non-depressing things we had done since Angel died. I tried to get sand out of my hair, and, believe it or not, the taste of sand from my mouth. And failed. We had spent about an hour or so right here, like this. We had to drop Ella at her aunt's house.

"Come on, all of you. We have to start off." I was met by a chorus of groans. "Come on!" I was already frustrated. "Ella, you have to go your aunt's house." That was when Ella decided to drop her newest bomb on us. Remember that note from before, _I was meant to have wings_? She really was. Ella took off her black jacket and revealed 12 feet of wingspan. 12 feet! I felt my mouth drop.

"And you didn't tell us this because...?" I asked.

"I, well.." I raised my eyebrows at her. "I.. was nervous, OK? And I still don't know how to fly. But I am _not _going back to my aunt!"

"Trust me, flying isn't as easy as it looks. Max pushed me off a roof and I fell face first like two times before I even lifted myself. You are in no shape to travel with us right now!" Dylan preached, and I shot him a look that said _thanks for all that, but did you have to mention the pushing off part? _He nodded in recognition. At least, I think he did. I think it was time to give Ella her first lessons for flying. And I had a feeling it wasn't going to turn out quite so good.

Fang POV

So, me and my crew is headed for Germany, to the castle Max and her gang got caught in (Book 3.) We had to get to the root of this. So there we were, in a train, headed down there. I looked out of window silently, and thought about Max. Suddenly, Maya came up to where I was sitting, and sat down. She quietly took my hand, and held it.

"Fang." Her voice came out icy.

"Yeah?" My voice was harsher than I meant, and Maya flinched.

"Choose," she said, recovering herself.

"Choose what?"

"Me, or... Max."

"Excuse me?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Me or Max?"

"Maya..." her eyes had that same determination Max got sometimes, when I knew she wouldn't let it go. That scared me. "The choice is simple for me. Max."

"Fang. Listen very carefully." Her voice was so low I could barely hear it. I'd never seen Max do something like this before, so it was fresh. And new. "Max and you can never be together again. _Ever_."

"That doesn't mean I stopped loving her." She sighed, and pulled out her cellphone (when did she _get _that?) and started showing me pics. I almost gagged on my chips. One of them showcased Dylan and Max kissing, at night. The same day me and Max had that fight in the sky. The next one showed her head on Dylan's shoulder, crying. Suddenly, I felt a pang of guilt. Now I saw what she meant that day in the elevator, when she said he was the only one who didn't leave her. She thought that Dylan was the only one who cared about her anymore. Those pics cut through me like a knife, and as cold as ice. One thought crossed my mind for the hundredth time that day- why did he leave Max?

"I'm sorry, Fang. I'm sorry I have to show those pics to you. But, I hope you get this- she has moved on. And it's time you do too. Remember what the little girl- what's her name- right, Angel, said- _you either stay and weigh it in, or you leave and don't have a say._" I raised my eyebrows, but said nothing. Where exactly was this headed? "It's time you move on- with me."

*****A/N: **

**Like said in the AN in the beginning, please review! **

**Did you like this chapter?**

**Did you hate it?**

**Should I put any romance between Fang and Maya/ Dylan and Max? **

**I want to write something you all will enjoy. So... thank you for reading!*****


	2. Surprises

*****A/N: After Angels chapter 2: It's here already!**

**Wow, I have 8 reviews! Thank you-**

**CiCiCheval**

**flip800and1**

**Serena**

**Luna**

**Fang-and-Max-OWN**

**Alexis Taylor**

**BunniesOfDoom**

**We are two bird of a feather**

**I added up what you guys thought and- We have FAX and Maya + Dylan (Mylan). I found some ideas in your reviews, and I hope you like this chapter. Thanks again for the reviews!**

**Disclaimer: **

**Me- Is my name James Patterson?**

**Max- Unless you got your name changed, it's still tinaisawesome. **

**Me- So... I guess I don't own you, your flock, or the books? **

**Max- No. Now go on with the story! (taps fingers on table). **

**Me- K then! I still own the plot, though.**

**Max- Gee, you and Nudge are twins!*****

Max POV

"Max, you're a genius!" Ella screamed at me, soaring above the border of California. I'd finally taught her how to fly, after some painful incidents for her- don't ask.

"Ain't I?" I yelled back. It was really windy out, in case you are wondering why I was screaming. We (as in, me, Ella, Dylan, the remaining flock) were up in the night sky, and it was cloudless today- just the way I liked it. The moon was the only source of light, except for the windows of the residents near the border and the cars, which wasn't much. Down on the land, I could make out the endless trees, and sand. There were many buildings and a lot of cars. There was a constant honking sound all the time, and the wind added with that made a recipe for no hearing whatsoever, unless you screamed. Which me and Ella were currently doing. "Are you pointing your wings?" I screamed at/ reminded Ella. She shook her head, and started pointing her wings I taught her.

"Much.." Ella took a breath, "easier!" I smiled at her. We were all still shaken over Angel dying. I distracted myself, and took a glance back at my flock. Dylan tried to sneak up on me, and I caught him.

"Ten points for me!" I said. The wind was starting to get worse. We had to get out of the air. "Flock!" I yelled. They nodded. "Go..." breath, "down!" There was no sound as we dropped altitude- 500 feet away from the city, 400, 300... We settled in a cave about 200 feet above the city, and rested.

"I'll take first watch!" Dylan said. I nodded, and sat down next to him. We were starting to become really good friends, just like me and Fang were. "So..." Dylan started.

" 'So...' _what_?" I imitated. Wow, you didn't _actually_ think I would be nicer to him, right?

"Max. You have to choose." His voice was firm and stern, and his eyes were scared that I wouldn't pick him. Sorry Dylan. I knew where this was headed.

"Where exactly is this conversation headed?" I said anyways. My voice was even firmer than his.

"Fang or me." I shook my head. The choice had always been crystal clear for me. And even after all that had happened, my choice would always be the same. _Sorry Dylan_, I thought. Maybe he would be able to hear me.

"Fang," I said. "It'll always be him." His eyes were so hurt, I felt a pang of uneasiness, uncertainty and guilt. He suddenly got up, rubbed the sand off his dark jeans, and took his brown wings out. He flapped them hard, and started to fly away. I tapped the back of Iggy's hand twice, and started to race after Dylan. I finally caught him, and grabbed his hand.

"Dylan," I said patiently. We were flying at the same level now, and the wind had gotten much better. As if Dylan could control that. "Listen. I know... I know how hurt you are right now. But the truth is, as much as I'd like to be with you," his face lit up when I said that, "I can't. And, I could never be happy with anyone other than him. I can't be with him, but can't stand to be without him. What do I do?" I said, and quickly added, "Don't answer that." I saw a smile flicker on his face for a couple of seconds, before it disappeared. I smiled back at him. We flew back towards our cave, and met an outraged Iggy.

"Max!" he said. You can't do this all the time! You can't... go off on midnight spins. There's a _reason _why they're called watches, you know?" I shrugged, but then remembered he couldn't see it.

"I shrugged, Iggy. You can go back to sleep now. I'll take the next watch." He nodded, and went back to where he was sleeping- next to Ella. I shuddered. The night quickly turned into dawn, and after finally getting 30 minutes of sleep, I started to wake everyone up. Dylan helped me in that task, and we were off. We were searching for Mom and Jeb. And something told me they were here, in Hollywood. Something having to do with CSM and Itex. _Who_ knew I'd find _Fang_ there? You guessed it- Dylan.

Fang POV

I'd noticed some changes since that day in the train. First, there _was _no Itex HQ in Germany any more, so that train ride had been a complete waste and second, Maya had been changing a lot of stuff to match Max. Like her hair.. she removed the magenta streak. She tried to change her attitude. Obviously trying to play with me. So there we were, taking a plane back to LA, and try to go the _new_ Itex HQ.

"Hey Fang!" Maya said. "Look who emailed me!" Since when did she have an email? Maya was sitting right next to me in the plane, and I was right in the middle, next to some old lady who was busy snoring.

"Who?" I asked, bored. I took off my headphones, and looked where she was pointing. It was from Max.

_Maya-_

_I know we haven't gotten off to a good start, but this might be able to fix this. I wanted to send Fang this, but apparently, I can't get through. So show this to him- it's important. But it's even more important that only Fang views this. BTW, I _know _you'll try to view this, but trust me, I'll know if you do. _

_-File begins-_

"I'll leave you to viewing this," Maya said, and pushed the computer towards me.

_F-_

_Move on with Maya. I know this is really short, but honestly, you know me well enough to figure out what pain it took me to write this. Move on- It'll hurt. It'll be torturing. But life will be so much easier when we don't have to worry about our love lives. _

_Thanks-_

_MR_

_P.S. Take me seriously. Consequences will be very bad otherwise. _

I read it over and over again, until I heard Maya say, "Are you _done_?"

"Yeah." I closed the link, deleted the email completely from Maya's email, and while I was going through it, I saw one important thing stick out. An email from Dylan. I swiftly clicked on it. "One sec."

_Maya-_

_We're going to LA too. See you soon! _

_-D_

What the hell? I looked at the email once more, than passed Maya her gray laptop back. Since when did she have a _laptop_? Where was she getting all of this stuff from? I knew one thing for sure- I had to get to LA. Quick. I turned off my T.V. (It's so cool how they get you a mini TV in long flights) and rested.

Okay, let's skip to next morning.

We got off the plane, and headed into the airport. We passed through everything, and for the first time, we weren't going through as criminals. Finally, we rented a car and went to the Itex center. Once we reached there (surprised by the lack of attacks?), we started to walk towards the tall building. It was hard, but we finally got through one on the security systems on the doors. Now, there were hundreds of doors there. But we managed to get in with a _clink_ and we were this close to actually busting our first Itex center. In a line of a whole lot. This close. But nothing is ever this easy, now is it? Security guards raced after us.

And the security guards were Gen 77 kids.

***** End of Chapter 2. This was a big one, about 4 pages on Word. I love the reviews, so keep on R&R! I'll try to post the next chapter in a couple of days, but don't hold it to me. So... keep on reading!**

**~Tinaisawesome~*****


	3. Kidnapped

*****A/N:**

**Here comes Chapter 3! (Crowd cheers.) **

**Okay, peoples, with the reviews:-**

**There were legit 205 (and still counting) people that read this story (I'm so proud! *tears*),**

**But only twelve (and still counting) reviewed! Isn't that so sad? =( **

**If you want the chapters to be longer, please review. I mean, I'm writing this for YOU. So if you appreciate me writing this, please review. Thank you.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the maximum ride series, the characters or the main plot. I do own the plot of this story since I created it. **

**No long disclaimer. Ha-ha. Let the story begin! *****

Max POV

I headed towards the building. It gave me the creeps—it was the classic horror movie type place. There were broken windows on the three floor building. The building was tiny, and the white color was faded. It had cobwebs covering the doors, and it gave the impression that no one had been in there since forever, exactly why I thought this was where they had trapped my mom and Jeb over there. Dylan caught up with me, and I didn't avoid his gaze—a record. He took my hand, and I didn't shake it off. Well, Fang was the one who had left me, right? I'm not waiting for him for 20 years. You're crazy if you think I am. (**A/N: Sorry Fax lovers, but remember this is Max.**)

"Hey Max!" Dylan said, smiling. I couldn't help but smile back.

"What?" I asked softly. I was finally going to make Fang regret leaving me.

"Look!" he said, pointing up. It was really cute—on top of the terrace, there was a really, really cute bird nest. There was a black bird leaning over the tiny, pearl-colored eggs. Suddenly, Dylan's smile transformed into a frown.

"What happened?" I questioned, concerned.

"Max, the eagle, don't you see it?" He pointed towards the weird looking bird. "It'll eat the smaller bird!" Except the thing wasn't an eagle—it was actually a bird kid/clone —Maya. I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth.

"Maya!" Dylan exclaimed. She looked worried. I probably looked like a volcano about to blow up. I still hadn't gotten over the whole Maya thing.

"Hey Dylan!" Maya said, and went and gave Dylan a hug. Okay, I would _never _do that! "Max."

"Maya." I replied in my same, cold tone. "Could you tell us why you're here?"

"Fang's... kidnapped." She choked out the last word.

"He's WHAT?" I half-yelled. "_How_?" Worry washed over me...

_He'll be fine_, the Voice said.

_How exactly do you know? _I replied back in my head. Concerned heads looked at me, and I shook my head.

_Because I know where he is. Be careful. They're after you as well. _The Voice was gone.

"WHAT DO YOU FUCKING MEAN?" I screamed in my head, not realizing I had screamed out loud.

"Talking to the Voice," I added hastily. They nodded.

"What was it _this _time?" Nudge said. She talked more when she was nervous, or worried. "I mean, is it like the time in New York when all the computers said, _hi Max_! Because that was _so _cool! Or is it like when it asked you to hop on a bus and ride to the toy store? That was cool, but it got scary when Ang-" Now she'd done it. She'd said the forbidden word. She _said _it. Right when I was about to _blow_!

"NUDGE! SHUT UP!" I yelled at her. She winced. "Sorry," I added. Tears started forming in her eyes. Shit. "Nudge..." I started, but Iggy interrupted me.

"You don't have to take it out on her, you know, Max. That's your problem, you don't notice it when others are sad!"

"Iggy! Don't take it out on Max! She's doing the best she can. He got _kidnapped_! Cut her a break!" Ella said, frustrated.

"Oh I see how it is. So to speak. You don't care about anyone other than Max!" Iggy was furious now. But if he was furious, he was nothing compared to the way Ella was looking at him. I tried to hug Nudge, but she pushed me back. Hard.

"_Ow _Nudge!" I said. "I'm trying. I'm really trying. The Voice said that... they're going to kidnap me next. And the voice is never, _ever _wrong." Nudge looked at me sympathetically, and so did the rest of the flock and Dylan. Except for Maya. And Iggy, but he can't actually look at me- because, you know, he's blind- oh to heck with this.

"See! Iggy, it's not her fault! So stop blaming her for everything!" Ella yelled at Iggy.

"I stopped, didn't I? Or did you not hear my lack of comments?" Iggy replied back. It went back and forth like that until Ella finally gave up and tears ran down her cheeks. I hugged her and wiped her eyes with my sleeves. Iggy ended up punching the brick wall, and getting bloody knuckles. That used to be us.. me and Fang. We used to fight like hell, then make up later on the day. So, as you might've guessed, Ella and Iggy did make up later. But I walked up to Maya... I had a couple of questions.

"How. Did. Fang. Get. Kidnapped?" I asked, in a very creepy yet calm voice. She winced.

"Um..." I gave her a look. "Max, we split up, everyone for themselves. Fang went alone. We were going to meet each other in half an hour. And.. he didn't come!" She started sobbing. Again, not so much like me. "We searched everywhere, until we found beads." I looked at her, confused. "Oh, we had this code, that if someone was being kidnapped or something, we would drop down a pack of beads." She pulled out a brightly colored pack of beads from her pocket. "Like this!" she said. I nodded.

"Okay, now what?" I said. She shrugged.

"Why do you think I came _here_?" I shook my head.

"Where's the rest of your gang?"

"They're coming here by train."

"Oh." I went inside the house. My head was spinning with ideas, but one really stuck out. The one I was going to perform in a matter of hours. _Fang, I'm coming for ya! _I thought, as I raced to my room.

Fang POV

I was stuck in a dog crate, back in the school. And this time, it wasn't a nightmare. Or daymare. How was I stuck here, exactly? I had been _kidnapped_! Kidnapped! Now I stood in my large sized crate. Now.. I know your next question. How had I been kidnapped? Read on.

-_flashback-_

_The security guards were Gen 77 kids. _

"_Everyone, listen up!" I said urgently. "ATTACK!" I yelled. Everyone started fighting like hell; it was a complete mess. There were Gen 77 kids everywhere. One without any eyes walked up to me, and I kicked it in the chest the way I had seen Max do so many times. I punched noses (whichever ones had one) and kicked chests. Finally, all the Gen 77 kids were pinned to the ground. We got up. _

"_Okay, guys!" I said. "We split up. Each of us meet here in half an hour. In case of an emergency, use the beads!" I'd developed the beads system for emergencies. At the moment, I didn't know I would have to use them myself. I went out in the hallway, and saw we had missed two Gen 77 kids. I could handle those two. Wrong decision. They pinned me to the floor, taped my mouth shut and I managed to slip some beads out of my pack. Those kids had my wrists and ankles duct-taped together. Something happened, and I was unconscious, until I woke up in a crate. A crate, that was size _large_. _

"_Where am I?" I groaned. "Anyone?" _

"_Hello, Fang. I see you have woken up. Your girlfriend Max will join you in this very crate shortly. To.. well.. you'll see." The lady giggled, and then left. WTF? I became unconscious again. _

_-end of flashback-_

So... there you had it. The whole story... summarized. What the f did that lady mean when she said Max would join me? Max and me, in _one _crate? You had to be kidding me. Life wasn't fair. But this... this was a whole new definition of unfair. Max, don't come to save me. _Please_. I just hoped she could hear me think this. I hoped.

*****A/N: **

**Chapter Three comes to an end. (Crowd: **_**awww...**_**) Well, there'll be more. I hope you liked the twist. Now... I hope you can see where the romance is headed. And if you can't, you'll find out soon enough. Keep on reading and REVIEWING! I hope you read what I said about reviews! **

**~tinaisawesome~**


	4. Unpleasant Situations

*****A/N:**

**Hi peoples! **

**I WANT MORE REVIEWS! Seriously peoples, if you like this story, do me a favor AND REVIEW! It's really NOT that hard! :) So, if you want me to update quicker, please write a short 'n' quick review. It helps so I can improve my story. Thanks!**

**Chapter 4: Here it comes! I really like this chap, and I think you will too. So.. read on!**

**Oh, I almost forgot:**

**Disclaimer- I don't own the Maximum Ride series or any of the characters or the central plot. I just own the idea to write this story. Thank you. Song: Beautiful, Akon. End of A/N.*****

Max POV

I wrote a note, quick.

_Hey flock, _

_Gone to search for Fang. Don't worry, I'll come back soon. Be on lookout anyways. Iggy, you're in charge in the night, and Dylan, you're in charge in the day. As I said, I'll be back soon. _

_C U later. _

_~Max R. _

_P.S. Ella, if anyone fights, you're in charge. For that hour. _

_P.P.S. Nudge- hack into anything you can find about Fang- his blog, any searches, whatever. _

After writing the note, I left it on Nudge's bed neatly, sneaked out and flew without anyone noticing. I made it to about, what, 20 miles, when I felt something against my wings. I landed and checked what it was; big mistake.

Suddenly, there were ten or so Gen 77 kids swarming over me, duct-taping my mouth shut and dragging me away. I kicked and punched, and I managed to break a Gen 77 kids' nose.

I fell unconscious; when I finally woke up, I was in a dog crate. With _Fang_. Okay, so finding Fang- check. Executing him to safety- not so much.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"Kidnapped. Looks like you were too."

"Yup. HELLO? ANY EVIL, CRAZY SCIENTISTS AROUND TO EXPERIMENT?" I yelled out of my crate. My view was a plain, white wall.

"Yes, Max. Hi!" I froze. It was...

"Mom?" I choked out.

"Yes Max. It's me." She put her face in front of me, and suddenly fury erupted inside me.

"_Ooh_, looks like your sense of fashion hasn't gotten any better. Nor has your hair!" I hissed, and fake smiled. Man, I was _good_.

"I'm sure my clothes and hair look fine." She brushed her hands over her brown shirt and jeans self-consciously anyways.

"Oh?" I said in my ice-cold voice. "Because it smells like it needs a wash- and amazingly, so do you!"

"Max. Stop before I lose control." Her voice sounded impatient. Good.

"Didn't you lose control already? You know, the day you were born, because you were so damn ugly?"

"Didn't I already tell you to stop? But you're so pigheaded you won't?"

"At least I'm not a backstabbing asshole!" She flinched, and Fang gave me a thumbs-up. I smiled.

"Whatever Max. You aren't getting out of here, so you better learn how to respect me. If you want food, that is."

"Sure... I know how much you guys need me alive. Or should I stop breathing right now to see your reaction?"

"Stop breathing, then. We have a Max III. And she's so much like you, not even you will be able to see the difference. And so will no one else." Terror raced inside my body. No. No.

"_Right_." I maintained my sarcastic approach. She walked away, shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

I slid down to the floor. "What now?" I asked Fang.

"Max... we're stuck. And this time, we can't get out. By the way, Max, what was that email about?"

"Which email?"

"You know, the one in which you told me to move on with Maya?"

"I never sent that."

"Uh-huh," Fang said, sarcastic.

"I really freaking didn't."

"There's no way Maya lied."

"How the hell did Maya know your email?"

"You sent it to her because you couldn't get through to me. Remember?"

"I didn't send it! I don't even KNOW Maya's email!" WTF?

"Then who..."

"Oh God, it must be Dylan. I must' ve left the account open on the laptop. Damn."

"Dylan. Why are you suddenly in love with him?"

"I'm _not_. Fang, you're the one who _loves_ Maya!"

"I _don't_!"

"Yes you do! I can tell! By the way, Fang, Dylan is so much better! _He _stayed! He was the one who was there for me when I needed it, and you were the one who left! Why do you care whether I date Dylan or not?"

"Because. You're my best friend. I mean, you used to be." His face showed no emotion, but a slight glint of pain rose in his eyes.

"I'll always be your best friend. And you'll always be mine. But..." I got all emotional again. Ugh, I hate emotions _so _much. "But, we can't be more than that. It's just not a possibility anymore, you know? We can't spend three minutes without yelling at each other. Anyways, long distance relationships don't exactly work out well, but we still need your gang to do their thing and mine to do theirs. "Comprendo Fang?" Pause. "Fang?" I waved my hand back and forth against his face, and he grabbed it. His teeth were clenched, and so were his fists.

"Fang." I said, softly. "I'm sorry." This was one of the rare times I ever said those words; yet it fit the moment perfectly. His dark eyes met mine, and a shiver ran down my spine. _Why couldn't things go back to the way they were? _I questioned to no one in particular. And I could tell Fang was thinking the exact same thing. Recognition passed between us, and time ticked away. I don't know when, but I slipped into a series of dreams that I don't remember anymore right in Fang's lap. And his head ended up on mine, in the cramped space. Will things ever go back to normal (what's normal for us, anyways)?

I'm guessing not.

Dylan's POV

It's been 3 days since Max was gone. Everyone was really, really gloomy. I tried my best to keep the mood light, but honestly, there's only so much I can do. And then there was Maya. I had to admit, she looked really pretty tonight. I mean, she actually _did _her hair, and cared whether she looked good or not. But the flock didn't exactly like Maya that much. They _hated _her, hated her so much. Maya wasn't bad. We'd been in contact ever since Paris; she was like the improved version of Max. She was nice; she was pretty and sporty. I was starting to like her, even though it went against me. I don't know why Max hated me so much. I mean, I was just existing. It's not her fault she's part avian. Similarly, it's not my fault I was programmed to feel that way about her! Life could give me a break sometimes.

"Flock. Report." I said, my "shift" for being leader coming to an end.

"Max is still gone," Gazzy said.

"No one got hurt today," Iggy said.

"I tried hacking into stuff, but didn't find anything," Nudge said.

"We-" Maya began.

"It's only the flock reporting, Max 2!" Iggy interrupted. Maya muttered something under her breath, and the flock (what remained of it) rolled their eyes, even Gazzy, who looked so adorable when he did.

They were all so gloomy, so sad, it made my heart break. I felt like breaking down right now, but managed myself. Suddenly an idea came to me- why not sing a song? So I got up on the table, and started singing Beautiful by Akon, and Nudge started to do the back-ups.

"When I see you  
I run out of words to say (oh oh)  
I wouldn't leave you  
'Cause you're that type of girl to make me stay (oh oh)

I see the guys tryna' holla  
Girl I don't wanna bother you  
'Cause you're independent and you got my attention  
Can I be your baby father?  
Girl I just wanna show you  
That I love what you are doin' hon

I see you in the club  
You gettin' down good  
I wanna get with you, yeah  
I see you in the club  
You showin' thugs love  
I wanna get with you

You're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful  
Said you're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful 

You're so beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
You're so beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
You're so beautiful 

Like the clouds you  
Drift me away, far away (yeah)  
And like the sun you  
Brighten my day, you brighten my day (yeah)  
I never wanna see you cry cry cry  
And I never wanna tell a lie lie lie  
Said I never wanna see you cry cry cry  
And I never wanna tell a lie lie lie 

I see you in the club  
You gettin' down good  
I wanna get with you, yeah  
I see you in the club  
You showin' thugs love  
I wanna get with you

You're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful  
Said you're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful

You're so beautiful  
Beautiful  
Beautiful  
Beautiful  
You're so beautiful  
Beautiful  
Beautiful  
Beautiful

Kardinal told you  
Whether the sky blue or yellow  
This fella ain't that mellow  
If it ain't about you (you)  
Hourglass shape make the place go (ooohhh)  
Waistline makes my soldier salute  
I'mma brute (brute)  
High from your high heel game  
High heels push up ya ass last name  
And you livin' in the fast lane  
Eyes like an angel (goddess)  
Watch my yellin' as she undress  
Spotless, heartless, bad to the bone  
Make me wanna go put me in the triple-X zone (zone)  
Lames don't know how to talk to you  
So let me walk with you, hold my hand  
I'mma spend them grands, but after you undress  
Not like a hooker, but more like a princess  
Queen, empress, president  
Pull anywhere you go on Earth  
'Cause your beautiful (okay?)

I see you in the club  
You gettin' down good  
I wanna get with you (ohh yeah)  
I see you in the club  
You showin' thugs love  
I wanna get with you

You're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful  
Said you're so beautiful (so beautiful)  
So damn beautiful (so beautiful)

You're so beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
You're so beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
beautiful  
You're so beautiful

Where'd you come from? You're outta this world to me  
You're a symbol of what every beautiful woman should be (oooh wee) (ohh ohh)

I never wanna see you cry cry cry (don't cry)  
And I never wanna tell a lie lie lie (oh yeah)  
Said I never wanna see you cry cry cry (ohhhh)  
And I never wanna tell a lie lie lie (lieee)

I see you in the club  
You gettin' down good  
I wanna get with you (ooh yeah)  
I see you in the club  
You showin' thugs love  
I wanna get with you

You're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful  
Said you're so beautiful  
So damn beautiful  
You're so beautiful." The song ended, and everyone clapped. So everyone was singing songs, and they were all smiling. I had made them happy. And that made me happy. 

*****End of Chapter 4. How was it? Like it? Dislike it? Tell me in a review. **

**Which other songs should I get Dylan to sing? BTW, for all of you Dylan haters, Dylan isn't that bad. I want ya all to see that in this story. **

**Thanks for reading this crappy note! Bye!**

**~Tinaisawesome~ End of A/N.*****


	5. Captured

*****Thanks for the many, many reviews! :) I love all of my readers. Keep on reviewing!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride, 'cuz I'm not James Patterson. (NO DUH!)*****

Max POV

"Get out, hybrid!" someone yelled.

"No thanks, I like my sleep, thank you very much," I replied back, half into the conversation. My eyes were still closed, and my legs were numb from the testing yesterday. Someone yanked my arm, hard.

"Two minutes, or else you get shocked!" the lady said. They had shocked me a couple of times yesterday, and trust me- it wasn't fun.

"I'm up!" I yelled, and got up, banging my head loudly against the top of the crate. An annoyed Fang looked at me.

"Do you mind?" he said, cranky because I just woke him up by banging my head. They unlocked the door, and quickly locked it back up after I got out. I walked on the cool, maple hardwood floor, that definitely needed insulation, out to the black track. I was barefoot, and my skin was dry and dirty from lack of showers.

"Water!" I gasped, and got two gulps of the cool liquid. I sighed. How long was I gonna be here?

_Longer than you expect, _the Voice said.

_What exactly is **that **supposed to mean? _I shot back. No reply- classic.

_You'll see_, the Voice replied. And then it vanished. I groaned in frustration. But that wasn't the worst part. Apparently, the scientists had developed some new system of mazes, and you had to get out of them. One wrong turn meant that you would get shocked. After getting shocked about 15 times, the Voice decided to help out. I ran between the blue walls, as the Voice gave me directions. _Left, _the voice said as I saw the bright yellow door marked exit. I passed each maze in about a minute. I did mazes for about 5 hours. Do the math. Finally, my legs turned to jelly and I couldn't take the pain anymore. Sure someone would stop this. It had been _five _hours. God help me here, please! I collapsed. They shocked me about 5 more times, until I really couldn't budge. 

_Max, get up, _the Voice said. I.. can't... They gave me another bottle to drink from, except this time, I got to drink the whole thing. Hollow achievement. I was provided with food. I found enough energy to gather myself from the cold, cold floor, and stand up, my feet this close to getting frostbite. Insulation much?

"Send it back to its crate," someone said. Strong arms pulled me towards where the crate was, and I was locked in there. I was only awake because of the odor drifting off of my sweaty clothes... it didn't smell good.

"Hey," Fang said, as he made space to fit me in there.

"Sup," I replied. Fang's eyes looked at my face, and concern replaced his expression.

"What the hell happened to _you_?"

"Oh, like you care." I rolled my eyes. "Anyways, they have some new technology. About mazes. You have to solve them, and you get shocked if you don't go the right way, or stop. I got shocked about, oh, 20 times? Maybe more? But then the voice helped me. The pain isn't that bad- of getting shocked, I mean. It still stings though- that's why I'm burned all over my arms, and probably a little on my face. After getting shocked five consecutive times, after you break down, they let you go."

"Oh." A _lot _of words there right? Not. "By the way, Max, I do care. I'll always care."

"Uh-_huh_," I said sarcastically. I rolled my eyes one more time.

"Max, we are going to be stuck here for a while, so let's try to be nice to each other, k?" I shook my head.

"Sorry, can't do. Too mad at you. Too much anger in my heart. Correction: _broken _heart."

"And whose fault is it that they can't move on?"

"You're right Fang. It _is _my fault. It's my fault that I trusted you. Or more like, it's my fault you didn't trust me enough to tell me you were leaving. I wouldn't have stopped you if you really wanted to go. But, I would have appreciated a talk with you about that. It's my fault that I let you break my heart. It's my fault I loved you. And it's my fault I'm starting to..." Pause. I took a deep breath in. "It's my fault I'm starting to become great friends with Dylan." Fang's face went pale at the last word. His eyes went wide, and his mouth formed a large O. Okay, not what I expected. Fuck.

"Max..." his voice broke. He swallowed back tears, and guilt flooded through me. Then I felt anger for feeling the guilt, and guilt for feeling the anger, and so on. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." Suddenly, his eyes turned furious. "But you cannot be serious about Dylan. No way!"

"Well, sorry doesn't cut it. And yes I'm serious about Dylan. It's the only thing I've been able to feel _certain _about since you _fucking left_!" Now I was really mad. I clenched my fists, and my face was burning.

"THEN WHAT DO I FUCKING DO ABOUT IT? Seriously. Gosh. I am trying to be nice, but _no... _Everything has to be done the way Queen Max likes it, or else you get yelled at!" I processed all of that, but my mind was _really _stuck on the I am trying to be nice part. He's trying to be nice. _Him_. Asshole.

"You asshole. You. Are. Trying. To. Be. Fucking. N-Nice?" My voice broke on the last word. I blinked a couple of times to contain the tears. Really?

"YES! I AM!" His voice was starting to get really loud.

"Stop talking so loud, Fang. It's hurting my ears. Leave the one part you didn't hurt alone." My voice was getting softer by each word.

"Max... I'm sorry." His voice was just as soft as mine was. I sighed.

"Fang. I can't forgive you, you know that? I can't. And... honestly, when we're apart, things are heartbreaking, but quiet. When we're together, things are a mess. You know what, you were right for leaving me. It hurts, but... Things will be quiet. We'll save the world. Everything will be fine. It's just, we can't be together anymore. We can't contact each other other than the normal email. No meeting together, no you-and-me... after we're out of this cage, we won't contact each other. At all. Understand?" My voice was really soft, barely a whisper. Yet he heard every word. He nodded.

"Max..."

"_What?_" I snapped. His eyes went wide.

"I love you."

"We both know how much," I said, angry. He toys with my feelings all the time, and now, since we have to work together, he loves me again?

"Why are you so impossible?"

"Whose fault is that?" OK, back to fighting. "Don't answer that, because it _is _yours. I have every right to be mad at you."

"For how long?" he snapped. "For how long are you going to torture me about this?"

"It's been one month. _One month_! You expect me to forgive you so easily?"

"Yes, based on the fact since I've known you since you were born!"

"Whatever Fang." I shrugged, then retreated to rolling my eyes. "There's no point in arguing with you."

"You're right. There's no point for me to argue with _you _either, since you're only going to make me feel worse about myself."

"Yep. By the way, where in the world are we?" I questioned.

"Do you really think I know?"

"I was hoping..."

"Hoping _what_?" he snapped at me.

"That you knew! Jesus, will you stop snapping at me?"

"No, I don't know. And no, I won't stop snapping at you."

"That only makes your case worse, you know. About me ever forgiving you."

"Like you will!" he said in disgust. "I don't know how Jeb dealt with you. I'm sure I can't deal with your obnoxious comments any more!" For some reason, that really stung. I just sat there in surprise, amazed at him. It was his fault, all of it. And now, all of a sudden, it was _my _fault? Tears threatened to spill, but I held them back, and swallowed hard. Clenching my fists, I looked up at Fang.

"I hate you. I really hate you. The moment we're out of this crate, I'm never talking to you again. Ever." Fang opened his mouth, but closed it again. And then I closed my eyes and drifted into dreams land, hoping it would somehow make my life feel better. It did.

Nudge POV

I looked around, trying to hack into this website and find some info on Max and Fang. I clicked more dialog boxes, and typed more numbers, that honestly made no sense to me. I managed to hack in.

"Guys! I'm in!"

"Nudge, what did you find?" Ella asked me.

"One sec." I looked into the website, and searched Maximum Ride. A couple of links popped up, and I clicked on the first one.

_Maximum Ride- Captured for once and for all? _The headline read. I scanned through the article, skipping the part about Max saving the world, blah blah blah. Finally I found it- Max and Fang were both in the same exact crate, in some institute in Seattle. Ugh... the rain city, really? I told the flock about this, wrote a note to Dylan and Maya, and headed out. And guess what- I was leader.

*****End of Chapter 5. R&R! I'll update asap.*****


	6. Bad Luck

***** Chapter 6 is here, people! Keep on reviewing and reading my story! Remember, More Reviews = Inspiration! Inspiration= Quicker Updates! Quicker Updates= Happy You =)! **

**Disclaimer: I'm not a old guy, who writes books. I'm simply a teen on my computer. So.. do I own Max R? No. *****

Fang POV

I slammed my fist against the back of the crate. Who the hell does she think she is? Oh, I'll never forgive you. Oh, I hate you. What the hell is wrong with that girl? Can't she tell I'm trying to make things fine between us? It's all _her _fault. Completely her fault. She scrunched her eyes, and got up, careful not to bump her head against the top of our crate. Yes, we were sharing a crate. A _tiny _one, I might add.

"Nudge, get off me!" she said, and then realized she was in a crate. "Oh." I swallowed my laughter.

I looked at the time on my watch. 6:00 AM, April ** (can't disclose dates, because, ya know... yeah.)

"Hi, Max." I said. Even in the morning, she was awake enough to still be mad at me. She really didn't have a reason though.

"Great. Start the day with the voice of an asshole." She rolled her eyes.

"Shut up, bitch." She shrugged the comment off. "By the way, it's April **. Don't you have a plan to get out of here yet?" No reply. I repeated what I said, again. No reply again, but I know she heard me this time. What was this, the silent treatment? Come on. She could do better than that. "Silent treatment, really? I thought you knew better than to do that, since we were in a cramped space together." She looked up at me, and then back down. "Max..?" I said softly. Suddenly, I saw a pool of dark red blood on our floor. "What the hell? Max, what happened?" She held up her palms. They were bloody and dark. I noticed how tired she was. I took her shoulders and shook her. "What. Happened?"

"I.. I dug my fingernails in my palm. I woke up, and then found this." She stated this as if she was asking what date it was, or what the weather was like.

"You really hate me so much you'll torture me with hurting yourself?" No reply. She put her head on my chest, and tears started to drift down her face.

"I'm sorry..." she murmured. "I've lost.. a lot... of blood. I might... not... survive..." No. _No_.

"Max, shh. You'll be fine. Don't worry. Shh." It was more like I was trying to comfort myself, though.

"Yeah right. Fang.. take care of the flock. I'm sorry. I'm really... really sorry." She pulled her face against mine, and kissed me hard. "I love you." With that, she was out. I lay her head gently on the floor of the crate, and yelled out loud.

"YOU STUPID SCIENTISTS! MAX IS DEAD! GOOD LUCK SAVING THE GODDAMNED WORLD _NOW_!" I yelled to the top of my voice. I laughed bitterly. Max was dead... good luck saving the world. No, Max wasn't dead. She would wake up right now, tell me she was kidding. But my yelling had gotten the scientists' attention.

"What the hell? Check it to make sure it is dead! Give it whatever you need to. We need Subject 15 alive! Hurry up!" Subject 15? That's who Max was? Correction: is? She isn't dead yet. No. They'll save her. She'll be alright. They took her out and started to give her adrenaline. Her eyes shot up.

"Fang? What are they doing to mphhhh." They clamped their hands against her mouth, and I mouthed her that it was all right. She nodded slightly. I tried to follow them, but I was locked up again. I cursed under my breath. I hope she would be alright. She had to.

Nudge POV

We flew over the skies. 3000 more miles to Seattle. Come on, come on! Suddenly, Gazzy cracked.

"Nudge, can we stop now? Please?" he gasped. I took in his sweaty face, and decided that...

"We're stopping. Just five more minutes, I need to find a place to land."

"How come she gets to lead?" Iggy said.

"Because I hacked into the computers. Plus, I am the oldest."

"No, you-" he started, but I cut him off.

"That can actually see."

"Right," Iggy said to Ella. "Ella's older."

"And she just learned how to fly. Quit whining and let me think so we can stop." I looked down, and saw a deserted cave. Excellent. "Look there, at 2:00 clock!" I said. Man, I loved this leader stuff. I brushed my brown hair back.

"Ooh, I see it!" Iggy said sarcastically.

"It's a cave, Iggy."

"K then."

"Okay, peoples! Let's go crash there!" I said, and was met by cheers. We finally landed there, dropped our backpacks, and I lit a fire just like I had seen Max and Fang do millions of times. We cooked rats and skinned them (ew, I know, but well... it was the only food we had.) After gulping down our oh-so-deli dinner, the gang laid their pillows down and closed their eyes. I took first watch. I don't know when, but I drifted off somewhere in the middle of my "watch". Gen 77 kids woke me up.

"Wakey-wakey!" one said. I kicked him in the wrong spot. _Ouch_! He, in return, pushed me off the cliff. And my wind breaker was still on. Fuck. Gazzy floated out, and tried to carry me, but failed miserably. He was sinking with me. Ella tried to save us, and well... lets just say, it didn't go too well. Iggy horribly tried to escape, but we were all sinking, that too headfirst towards the cliff. Damn it. We were going to die. I'm sorry, Max, we couldn't save you all. I'm sorry... And then everything went black.

*****Sad ending, I know. R&R! 2 chaps in one day! Cool, right? I'll do this speed if you keep on reviewing. 5 more reviews till the next chap, peoples!**

**Peace out!**

**~Tinaisawesome~*****


	7. Max III

*****Chapter 7, here we go! Hey, folks. I DEMAND **_**MORE REVIEWS**_**! I mean, seriously, one review? You all can do better than that! So. On with the Disclaimer: I Don't Own Max R. Because I Am A Kid With Word On Her Computer And **_**Not James Patterson**_**. Caps Necessary! Enjoy peoples!*****

Fang POV

_Max... What were they doing to her? Was she dead? I couldn't live without her..._ I wondered for the hundredth time. I didn't know what to do, and this was driving me insane. I'm telling you, if you find me in some asylum two days from now, it was all the fault of wacko scientists who lost the ability to be... well... normal. Sane. Not retarded. However you might wanna put it. After 3 hours of constant thinking and talking to myself (again, the scientists' faults, not mine), Max finally came back, her arm strapped up and her face pale. I crawled to her in the crate and hugged her, hard. I thought she was dead. But there she was, talking to me, and her eyes went wide.

"Whoa!" she said, but smiled. Her eyes were layered upon with emotion, each a different one, but I managed to spot a few- anger, guilt, confusion and... wait, was that trust? Hmm. Interesting.

"You're alive."

"Yes, very much, thank you." She rolled her eyes, but a grin replaced her smile.

"You're very happy."

"And you're Mr. I State The Obvious. _I know_, genius."

"Yep, I am one."

"Well, if you were a genius, we would be out of this crate, for one. You would actually be a _good _leader, for another. You would recognize the way people feel, lastly. I'm quite the spokesperson, am I not?" Her grin got even wider. Her eyes sparkled with happiness. Now I was starting to get worried. Why was she so happy? She had a cast. She should probably be groaning or something. What was wrong?

"Making you feel bad is my job!" I said, and she winced. "What?"

"I'm.. making you feel bad? Sorry." Wait, did Max just say the _s _word? Shoot me!

"You.." I cracked up, "You said sorry..?" I started to burst up in laughter. This was one of the rare times she ever said that word, and why would she say it right now? What the hell? Confusion is putting this lightly. Her eyebrows crunched together, and her smile turned upside down.

"Did I do something wrong?" _Yes, yes you did._

"No, not at all. It's just... it's rare to see you like this."

"Ditto. I haven't seen you smile in such a long time, I thought your face had lost the ability." Since when did Max say _ditto_? Oh, right, she said that one day when we were around 10 because Jeb said it once. But she never repeated it after that. Ever.

"Max, what's wrong?" Panic raced through the owner's eyes. _Why panic_?

"I'm happy."

"No, other than that."

"Oh, nothing. Nothing!" she said, and she laughed nervously. Something was definitely wrong. But what? I raised an eyebrow. "You don't trust me, do you?" Ugh, not the trust thing again.

"I trust you alright." _Not_. "Let's go to sleep." _Stay up and talk to me_! "We'll talk about this later." _TALK TO ME NOW_!

"K." She nodded, and went to sleep. Okay, what was up with her? God, please don't let this be something bad. _Please_. I begged silently for the rest of the night, and slightly wondered what was wrong with my Max. Please let it be Valium or something. Please don't let it be... I was so stupid. How could I have been so clueless? The answer was right in front of me the whole time. Oh,god, why?

**(A/N: This is the point where it was originally going to end, but I felt generous. ;] So... read on!). **

Max POV

I scrunched my eyes open. I was on a bed. A hospital bed, to be exact. I looked at what I was wearing- instead of the usual tee and jeans, I had a green hospital gown on, and let me tell you, _I don't like gowns_! What was I doing here? I looked around, confused, as a doctor walked in. She was a lady, with her platinum blonde hair, obviously dyed, tied up in a bun and she carried a clipboard. She was obviously very young, and extremely pretty, although I couldn't exactly see her face too well.

"Max," she said, coolly. I recognized her voice immediately. WTF?

"Brigid _Dwyer_," I sneered at her. She flinched. I had that power on people.

"I hear you bled yourself to almost infinite death. You owe it to me to be alive right now."

"Stalker much?" I said, smiling. This was going to get fierce. I could feel it.

"Excuse me?" she said, surprised. Good.

"Excuse yourself. By the way, how does it feel to be the Devil's twin sis? You both have the same horns and ugly face." I smiled wider. God, this felt so good, especially because I hated her from the beginning (read _The Final Warning_ if you need more info on _that_.)

"I would watch what I was saying if I was you."

"Well, you're not smart. You're not pretty. You're not athletic. You don't have two guys head over heels for you. You aren't me." Her eyes went wide at the comment.

"Remember what I just said, Ride."

"And why, exactly, would I do that?"

"Because I have Fang in a crate. Trapped." Okay, score one for Brigid. But I didn't show that I was uncertain. Instead, I grinned at her.

"_Right_. Why would I trust your ass, again?"

"There." She pointed to the screen, that was reeling down in front of me, blocking my view from the doctor until she stepped near me. A video showed up. I blinked.

_Fang hugged Max III. Oh COME ON! Another me? _

"_Whoa!"_ Max III said, smiling. That bitch.

"_You're alive," _Fang said.

"_Yes, very much, thank you." _She rolled her eyes, but a grin replaced her smile.

"_You're very happy."_

"_And you're Mr. I State The Obvious. I know, genius."_

"_Yep, I am one."_

"_Well, if you were a genius, we would be out of this crate, for one. You would actually be a good leader, for another. You would recognize the way people feel, lastly. I'm quite the spokesperson, am I not?" _Her grin got even wider. Good one, Max III!

"_Making you feel bad is my job!" _Fang said, and she winced._ "What?"_

"_I'm.. making you feel bad? Sorry." _Wait, did I just say... _sorry_?

"_You..You said sorry..?" _Fang said, cracking up.

"_Did I do something wrong?" _NO DUH! YOU SAID SORRY!

"_No, not at all. It's just... it's rare to see you like this."_

"_Ditto. I haven't seen you smile in such a long time, I thought your face had lost the ability."_Since when did I say ditto? I saw confusion of Fang's face.

"_Max, what's wrong?"_Fang asked. That's my boy.

"_I'm happy." _Right.

"_No, other than that." _Smart-ass Fang strikes again. I smiled.

"_Oh, nothing. Nothing!"_ she said, and she laughed nervously. _"You don't trust me, do you?" _Max III said. Don't blackmail him! That's my job, you slut.

"_I trust you alright. Let's go to sleep. We'll talk about this later." _NO! FANG DON'T DO THAT! That's when the video ended.

_***** END OF CHAPTER 7! MORE REVIEWS PLEASE! CLICK THE BUTTON!**_

_**Peace out. **_

_~Tinaisawesome~ _


	8. Back

*****Chapter 8! YAY! Please, more reviews!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Max R. Sorry for the cursing.*****

Fang POV

It was Max III. I had to say, she was a tad more convincing than Maya... at least she didn't ask to fix Nudge's hair or cook. But she was _way_ too perky. I mean, tone it down on the grin, will ya?

"Hey F!" Max III said, perky. (Read the comments above.) _F_? You're kidding me.

"Hey M-3!" I said, grinning. Her eyes went dark.

"What do you mean, M-3? I'm Max, right?" I swallowed a laugh. "_Never mind._" She said that so loudly it hurt my ears.

"Max III. _That's _what I mean by M-3. By the way, Max III, what's the password?"

"What password?"

"Ya know, the password to make sure one of us isn't a clone. Or, in this case, a clone _of _a clone. So, what is it?"

"Um..." she said, confused and nervous. Her eyebrows scrunched together. "The flock?" she blurted.

"No."

"Fang?" I blushed at that one.

"No."

"Nudge?"

"No."

"Iggy and Max?"

"_No_."

"Angel?" I clenched my fists on that word. It was forbidden to be said, by me _and_ Max. "Sorry...?" she said, and let it hang. I wanted to hang _her _so she would die!

"Shut up. Just shut up." She looked hurt. _Right_. "CAN I HAVE WATER?" I asked, screaming to the people outside of the crate. They passed me a full glass, and I gulped it down. I then broke the glass into pieces, and started aiming them _at Max III_. I am a genius, aren't I? She was bleeding like hell, and she lost a lot of blood. In the next few minutes, she passed out on the gray bottom of our crate. Ouch.

"Yes, I am Max III. And your _Max_," she sneered as she went down, "will be on her death bed very _very _soon." My eyes widened. _Max was alive_?

Max POV

So... I am awake, at (let me check the time) sometime late in the night. I looked up at the white ceiling, and as I watched up, I saw Fang's face forming on it. The whole video played all over again on the ceiling in my mind, and again, and again... Finally, I moved on to picturing Dylan, and my heart ached. But it wasn't like the longing I felt for Fang. This was... different. Yes. That's all. It was just different. Right? _Just keep telling yourself that_.

"Oh, it's awake!" a female voice said. _Hey_! I recognized the female voice immediately. Guess who?

"_It _is not awake, you bitch. _She _is." Keep on guessing...

"Oh look, the dumb creature can talk?" she dissed, and there were oohs from the background. Since when did scientists have humor? [**No offense scientists.**]

"Oh look, the slut can _think_?" I replied back coolly. Ms. Comeback, that was me.

"Dude, do you ever _not _curse?"

"Dude, did it cross your mind that you aren't cool enough to _say dude_? And why exactly do you care if I curse, stalker? Never mind, you aren't a stalker- psycho bitch, that's more like it. And I will not stop cursing, so deal with it."

"_Shut up_. Shut up, do you really want to see another video of Max III and your ex?"

"Sure. I don't mind watching videos. _Any_thing is better than seeing your ugly, messed up face." Her mouth formed a big O, and she looked like she wanted to kill someone. And that someone was going to end up being me. "O_kay_..." I said.

"_Okay... _yourself!" I felt like a 10-year-old. Which was never a good thing. "By the way, you're going back to your crate. And we're taking Max III out, to make tiny improvements."

"Good luck. I change myself every two minutes, and my flock is much smarter than that dumb-ass you all are creating!"

"Your flock isn't alive anymore. I _pity _you," she spat at me. Okay, I've been called everything from arrogant to zealous, but I've never been pitied. Ever.

"And why would I believe you, Brigid?" I finally revealed who she was, so you can stop guessing.

She sighed. "Do I have to show you everything? Look." She pointed to the same screen she showed me the video on. There were Gen-77 kids coming over to Nudge in... is that a cave? Why are they in a _freaking cave_? Nudge's face zoomed in, and were Nudge's eyes closed? Really, Nudge? I expected better. Her eyes whizzed open, but it was too late. The Gen-77 kids, two male ones, pushed her down. And Nudge didn't have her windbreaker on! Gazzy followed, and tried to carry Nudge. He failed. I don't think I need to give details, they just stacked on top each other until they sank down. I saw a pool of blood form around their bodies. And suddenly my blood went ice cold. I froze. _No. No. _NO! THEY DIDN'T DIE! THEY DIDN'T _NOT_! Ugh. Tears started forming, but I pushed them back.

"Take me back to my F- crate." Okay, so I almost said take me back to my Fang, but... that's the only family I have left. I blinked a couple more times, thinking of the dark red blood, surrounding them... I shook my head, as if by thinking that it would all go away. But it never would. As Brigid dragged me roughly through turns, all I could think of was how merciless these scientists were. Why me? Why? At that moment, I realized something- God didn't exist. [**I believe in God, but I'm thinking from Max's pov**_**.**_] If He did, than my flock would be alive. Wait till I see Dylan, I will cut him up into pieces and drop him in a gutter in the middle of nowhere. But that won't bring them back. These scientists... I will kill them. I will kill every single one of them. Don't worry Nudge... I won't back down until I kill them.

"There you go!" Brigid said, smiling sarcastically. She rubbed her hand together as she pushed me in. She pulled Max III out gently. "Your work is done here. Good job!" Fang touched my shoulders gently, and then proceeded to hugging me, hard. Our eyes met, and he understood.

"Max... sweetie, what happened? Max? _Max_?" Tears started forming and dripped down my face.

"Max... hon, what happened?" he asked softly.

"Fang..." I started to sob and soaked his shirt but he didn't seem to mind. He wrapped his hand around my neck and pulled me closer.

"Max, tell me. It's really bad, isn't it?" I nodded and bit my lip.

"Fang, the flock... they're dead," I choked out, and his face was ashen.

"_WHAT?_" he yelled. He started to shake my shoulders, and tears formed gently on his face as well, washing the dirt while dripping down. I wiped them with my fingers, but instantly regretted it, since they were full of.. you know.. dirt.

"It's... it's true. They d-d-dead. I saw how it happened. They showed me the video of them. They were in a c-c-cave, and... Gen-77 kids attacked and pushed Nudge down, and Nudge's windbreaker wasn't on, and then Gazzy tried to carry her, and Ella tried to carry him, and Iggy tried to carry them all and they all sunk to rock bottom. Their... Their b-b-blood..." I started sobbing all over again, but this time the eyes that met mine weren't comforting ones... they were ones filled with anger.

*****Oh wow! Six pages! R&R!"*****


	9. The Escape!

*****Chapter nine! I've been really excited to upload this chap. I know all of you readers probably have a couple of questions, and don't worry, they _will _get answered. It feels so good to build up suspense! Anyways, there will be more frequent updates these few days, I hope. Thanks for reading this authors note crap! **

**MORE REVIEWS! Reviews make me happy. (: **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Max R.! **

**Let's go on with the story.*****

**The escape!**

Fang POV

"It's... it's true. They are d-d-dead. I saw how it happened. They showed me the video of them. They were in a c-c-cave, and... Gen-77 kids attacked and pushed Nudge down, and Nudge's windbreaker wasn't on, and then Gazzy tried to carry her, and Ella tried to carry him, and Iggy tried to carry them all and they all sunk to rock bottom. Their... Their b-b-blood..." Max said, and started sobbing all over again. Wait, why were they in a cave? _Oh no_. No way in hell did Max leave the Flock alone. No way. My dark eyes met hers, and she flinched.

"How _could _you? How could you... you just left them, like that? You tortured me about leaving you, and you leave _them _first chance you get? I left to protect your filthy ass... and now I know I was right to." Max shuddered, and fell to the ground. Her head hit rock bottom, and a loud clank filled the silence passing through us. That, and my eyes sending laser beams at her.

She removed her pocket knife, and stared blankly at her wrist. Before I could get this through my head, she slit open her wrist, and blood flowed out. She repeated this act until I managed to get the knife out of her grip. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"I..." Pause. "I have no one. And I don't deserve to live. Give me the knife so I can kill myself."

"No." Her eyes went wide.

"Fine. So be it. There _are_ other ways to suicide, you know."

"I won't let you. I am _not _going to be the person dealing with all the pain while you're dead. If you kill yourself, kill me too." **(A/N: I know- very suicidal. But they'll become better.) **

"No. I won't kill you. And I won't kill myself. But just so you know, I am like a ghost. I have no emotions anymore. Just self pity. Self pity because I chose you over the safety of my flock. People say true love hurts. Well this _true love _just killed me." _True love_, huh? She was dark red by the time she finished. Since when was Max this dramatic? Okay, this is the real Max though, so don't get any Max III ideas. Or Max IV.

"You picked me? Great achievement. Now we're both A, stuck in a _dog crate_ and B, suicidal!"

"Don't blame me! You _know _you love me!" Okay, believe it or not, I blushed.

"I DO _NOT_!" I yelled. _Lies_, I said to myself.

"I can tell when you lie! I admitted I still love you! And you do too, or else you wouldn't have stopped me from cutting my wrists!"

"I am your best friend!" I yelled back. She nodded.

"Of course. I forgot. I forgot that... Never mind." That Max, always knows how to get to me.

"Forgot what? That I 'm still your friend?"

"No, that..." Building up suspense, huh Max? She _knows _how much I hate suspense.

"TELL ME!"

"That you don't care whether I am alive or dead anymore!" A tear escaped her heavy eyelids, and she wiped it off. "Why me?" she mumbled softly. "Why... me...?" she repeated, this time her head in her lap. I put my arm around her, and she yanked it off.

"Fang, don't pretend. Either you're in, or out. And you made it pretty damn clear you want out. There's no middle." Actually, there was, but I knew Max knew that, so there was no point in pointing that out.

"Fine. If you want me out that bad..." I distanced myself from her physically, but I couldn't think of anyone other than her for the rest of the night. The result? I was damn tired when they woke me up for the so-called _mazes _that _she _told me about.

"G' Morning, Fang!" she said, clearly forgetting the night before. "Right," she said quickly, and made space for me to get out.

"Let's get this over with," I said to myself. They locked the crate, and I saw a flash of blonde through the chimney that made me want to hurl. Guess who it was? Dylan! "What the fu-" I started, but the cold floor made me shiver. WTF was he doing here? And following behind was... Max? No, it was Maya. Why was Maya with him? I followed my "leader", questions swarming through my head.

Maya POV

I held Dylan's hand as we carefully balanced ourselves on the roof, trying to find a way in. I felt like a spy... It was really cool. The chimney was spitting out warm air, and that seemed pretty good in the bitter cold outside. The trees were changing colors. Guess what? It's _autumn_. **(A/N: I know Maya is annoying, but isn't she supposed to be**_**?**_**) **

"Let's head over there!" I said, pointing to the brick chimney. He nodded, and didn't let my hand go as we made it over to the other side of the slanted roof, where the chimney stood. "So much better..." The warm air made blood flow through my face again. As I went in deeper to get warmer, I witnessed something from the chimney. It was a crate in front of a white wall. Why could I see Fang there? "Dylan, look!" I pointed at the crate. His eyes went wide.

"That's our way in." He looked through the chimney. When he turned, I took one more look. Fang followed some well-built guy. Dylan picked me up. "Ready?" I nodded, and looked straight down. "Don't make a noise!" Dylan whispered as he dropped me through. I resisted an urge to scream as I went straight down.

"Max!" I said, and she looked up at me. She scrunched her eyes in disgust.

"Ugh, you. What are you doing here?" she said in a bored voice.

"Well, I am here to save you and get you the hell outta here!" I said. I smiled at her, and called Dylan. "Down, Dyl!" I yelled up the chimney. He dropped quietly, and started to pick the lock, when Max stopped him.

"Fang's still out. We have to wait for him to come back. You both can hide inside the chimney. They don't generally come here."

"K," I said, and made my way over. So we waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, Fang came, looking exhausted as hell. We let him go inside, and then made our way over.

"Hi!" I said to Fang.

"Maya, isn't Dylan with you?"

"Yeah. Dyl?" I said, and Dylan made his way over.

"Hey Max! Fang."

"Pick the lock already!" Fang said. Dylan started picking, and Fang and Max made their way out. We flew out the chimney in harmony, and flew with all our energy to the nearest state, which was Oregon. Things were about to get_ really messy_. Let's wait and watch!

*****Chapter 9 ends. ): **

**REVIEW!******


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